"The Hobbit" hits theaters this Friday and besides all the hobbits, orcs, elves, humans, dragons and Gollums, there's also a group of sturdy folk who form the backbone of the movie: Dwarves.

This isn't the first time dwarves have been portrayed in film, of course — and it's not the first time that little people have been played on screen by regular-sized folks, either. But "The Hobbit," with its band of stout and heroic dwarven heroes, is undoubtedly one of the most prominent portrayals of little people in Hollywood's long and checkered history.

So that got us thinking: Where is "The Hobbit" going to end up ranking on the scale of most positive to most demeaning portrayals of little people in film? To help you decide that for yourself, here's a quick continuum of nine prominent movies featuring little people, ranked from most positive to most demeaning.

The Star Wars film universe has featured diverse characters such as Jedi Knights, space pirates and wookies, as well as droids, princesses, and farmboys. And several characters have featured in all six films, including Obi Wan Kenobi, the droids C-3Po and R2D2, as well as Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader. With Star Wars Episode VII slated to be released in 2015, the biggest question isn’t just what characters featured in the expanded universe will appear, or what original characters will be created, but what characters from the previous two trilogies will appear, if any.

Two obvious choices for a return appearance are, of course, C-3Po and R2D2. The lovable droids, inspired by characters in Akira Kurosawa’s The Hidden Fortress, have, as mentioned earlier, appeared in all six Star Wars films, including a “naked” appearance by C-3Po in The Phantom Menace. They provide great comic relief
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There were no MTV Movie Awards when “Star Wars” was released in 1977 (there was no MTV yet, either). If there were, it’s a safe bet that the film would have swept pretty much all of the categories. Aside from Movie of the Year and Best Cast, “Star Wars” would surely have blown away the competition in these races:

Though the entire original “Star Wars” trilogy predated the Movie Awards, a notable honor was subsequently given to one of its most important figures. During the 1997 show, Chewbacca was given a Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by host Mike Myers.
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May the 4th is upon us once again, which means it’s time for us to wish our awesome fans a Happy Star Wars Day! Even though Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope was released on May 25th, 1977, due to the clever (force/fourth) pun, May the 4th has become known among fans as Star Wars Day. With that being said, May the Fourth be with you… always.

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope is the first film made in George Lucas’ epic six film Star Wars saga and the fourth installment in the list of episodes. Star Wars was groundbreaking in 1977 and brought about new special FX, used unconventional editing and introduced a new wave of sci-fi and fantasy storytelling to cinema. The film is one of the most successful and influential films of all time and won six Oscars, but missed out on Best Picture.

The story follows Luke Skywalker (Hamill) who comes into possession of two droids carrying a distress message
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He may be the star of the new Snow White adaptation, but Povinelli's dwarfism means he's fighting for varied roles

In his hotel room in New Orleans, Mark Povinelli is reflecting upon the sort of scripts he receives. "They're usually obnoxious. I flick through to what page I'm going to be on and … 'Oh look! Biting someone on the ankle! Or punching someone in the balls!' … The trick is to be one step ahead of them. You can't just say, 'I don't like this', you have to come up with an idea that is better. And that's the real challenge – an extra added task that a lot of average actors don't have to deal with. Not only do you have to be a good performer, but you have to come up with better material than you're given a lot of times, to allow yourself to sleep at night."

He may be the star of the new Snow White adaptation, but Povinelli's dwarfism means he's fighting for varied roles

In his hotel room in New Orleans, Mark Povinelli is reflecting upon the sort of scripts he receives. "They're usually obnoxious. I flick through to what page I'm going to be on and … 'Oh look! Biting someone on the ankle! Or punching someone in the balls!' … The trick is to be one step ahead of them. You can't just say, 'I don't like this', you have to come up with an idea that is better. And that's the real challenge – an extra added task that a lot of average actors don't have to deal with. Not only do you have to be a good performer, but you have to come up with better material than you're given a lot of times, to allow yourself to sleep at night."

Star Wars Identities is a new museum exhibit set to open on April 19th in Montreal, Canada that will explore the theme of personal identity both in ourselves and in the characters that inhabit the Star Wars universe. It will arrive in Edmonton on October 27th, with further dates to be announced. Six posters have been released from this exhibit, which you can check out here.

Chicago – Jar Jar Binks is back, and George Lucas has him in 3D. Yes, the re-release of 1999’s “Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace,” takes advantage of the new 3D technology. However, it can’t change the story or the now 13-year outrage regarding this weird take on the Stars Wars legacy. Were we ever that young and that angry?

Rating: 3.0/5.0

It was interesting revisiting the film and its controversy, since it was probably the most anticipated release of the 1990s. The simplicity and clean lines of the narrative in first series of films – actually the middle series, which again caused some consternation – gave way to a film about blockades and trade wars, with an introduction of the most hated character in cinema in the last 25 years, and that’s even taking in the entire Adam Sandler’s oeuvre. Jar Jar Binks, actually the whole bizarre Gungan tribe, is
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One of the most memorable commercials shown during Super Bowl Xlv last year was Volkswagon's adorable spot featuring a young child dressed as Darth Vader. This year for Super Bowl Xlvi, Volkswagon returns to the Star Wars universe with a sequel TV spot entitled The Dog Strikes Back, to promote their new Vw Beetle. This latest ad takes us into the Mos Eisley Cantina and offers plenty of cameos from some of our most beloved Star Wars characters. We also have a making-of video, which takes us behind-the-scenes of this 30-second commercial. Click on the videos below to watch Volkswagon's return to the Star Wars universe.

First we were treated to dogs barking the Imperial March in a teaser for Volkswagen's Super Bowl Xlvi TV spot, airing February 5th during the big game. Now we've learned that next Sunday's anticipated Star Wars themed ad will take place inside the infamous Mos Eisley Cantina, and its storyline will revolve around that most famous Snivvian of all, Snaggletooth. Volkswagen has released a teaser image with this popular alien at the forefront. Check out the return of Snaggletooth in the photo below (hopefully this will do more for his career than The Star Wars Holiday Special and his notorious dance with Maude's Bea Arthur ever did).

Before the first Star Wars movie exploded onto the public’s consciousness in May 1977 it was a completely different time for fans of movies and sci-fi. Steven Spielberg’s Jaws had only been released the year before and had unexpectedly become the first modern age box office hit. Hollywood hadn’t yet realized that it was about to enter the era of the summer blockbuster and didn’t yet know audiences were craving imaginative cinematic experiences to distant galaxies and high adventure.

Back then, Star Wars was an unproven concept. Science fiction films didn’t make big money and were considered risky gambles for studios to take. And for a 32-year-old filmmaker named George Lucas who had a vision of Jedi Knights, dark Sith Lords, droids and princesses in peril, selling a major movie studio on making Star Wars
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Last year, Volkswagen found viral success with their cute Super Bowl Xlv ad that featured a miniature Darth Vader attempting to start the new Passat with the Power of the Force. Vw plans to ride that success into this year's Super Bowl Xlvi, and they have released a 60 second teaser featuring a choir of dogs decked in Star Wars regalia barking out the Imperial March. To watch this "cute" precursor to the actual spot airing February 5th during the big game, click on "The Bark Side" below (and be sure to wait for the Imperial At-at at the end).

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